Collapsible infant carrier



June 2, 1953 L s 2,640,712

COLLAPSIBLE INFANT CARRIER Filed July 8, 1949 IN V EN TOR.

ADEUNE E. LASH BY ATTORNEY Patented June 2, 1953 UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE I 2,640,712 COLLAPSIBLE INFANT CARRIER Adeline IE. Lash,Cleveland, ohm Application July 8, 1949, Serial No. 103,620

Claims. (Cl. 280-41) The present invention relates generally to Wheeledcarrier devices, and more particularly to a form of infant carrier whichcan be folded or collapsed for storage.

It is the primary object of my invention to provide a baby carrier whichis so designed as to be sturdy and well-suited for its intended purpose,yet one which can be easily and quickly folded into acompactQeasily-carried, unit.

Another object of my invention is to provide a carrier of the characterdescribed which can be folded or unfolded without the use of tools orspecial skill.

Still another object of my invention is to provide a foldable carrierwhich may be wheeled along the pavement, if desired, in its folded orcollapsed condition.

A still further object of my invention is to provide a carrier of thecharacter described in which the handle or grip, which is normallyutilized for pushing the carrier, is also utilized for holding orcarrying the carrier in its folded position.

Another object of my invention is to provide a baby carrier havingimproved means for locking the parts thereof together inboth theoperative and folded conditions thereof.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent duringthe course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, andin which like numerals are employed to designate like parts throughoutthe same,

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a collapsible carrier embodying thefeatures of my invention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the baby carrier shown in Fig. l.

Fig. 3 is a side elevational view in a folded or collapsed condition.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged fragmentary plan View of the locking means forsecuring the handle to the carrier frame, taken as indicated by line 6-4of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken on line 55 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on lines 66of Fig. 3, showing the manner of securing the handle to the frame whenthe carrier is folded, and

Fig. 7 is an enlarged fragmentary cross-sectional view taken on line'l'l of Fig. 2, showing details of the pivotal mountingof the link bar.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, the carrier includes arectangular frame 1 formed of the carrier of metal, which may be in theform of flat stock as illustrated, or may be tubing or rod or the like.On the frame I is secured a carrier body 2 formed of cloth or the likeand having a series of hemmed edges 3 formed by stitching 4 which form asleeve through which the frame passes.

The edge-of the carrier is cut out to form openings 5 at spaced points,these openings serving to increase ventilation of the carrier and alsoserving to expose the frame I so as to permit access to the lockingmeans which will be more fully described hereinafter. The carrier body 2is thus suspended from the frame I and supported thereby to form ahammock-like structure in which an infant may lie. In the bottom of thecarrier body 2, transversely spaced leg openings 6 are provided sothatwhen the child is in sitting position, it can have its legsextending through the openings 6. If the child is just learning to walk,it may use the carrier as a support while walking with its legsextending through openings 6;

At one end of the carrier body 2, a piece of cloth 7 is sewn' to thebody 2 to form a pocket which can be utilized for carrying infant'sneeds such as diapers, bottles, etc. The pocket may be open, asillustrated, or it may be provided'with a flap and fastening means in amanner well known in the art.

The frame I is supported above ground level by two legs 8 and a longhandle member 9 which are formed of metallic flat stock. One leg 8 isdisposed at each front corner of the frame and is pivotally'secured asat ill to an ear II which depends from the frame I and is weldedthereto.

'It will be noted that through the utilization of the ear 1 l, the pivotpoint H1 is so located that when the'leg 8 isrotated ninety degrees, [asseen in Fig. 3, to a position parallel to the frame I, it lies adjacentthe edge of the frame rather than overlying the frame. As willhereinafter more fully appear, this offset relationship of the pivotpoint Ill to the frame l aids in preventing interference between theframe and the movable components during the folding operation.

At the end of such leg 8 is mounted a caster wheel i2 which journals ina sleeve l3 which is secured to the leg 8 as by welding.

The legs 8 are joined by a cross-bar [4 which extends between the legshorizontally and is Welded to each of them.

Approximately at the mid-point of thecrossbar it a lug or ear I5 isWelded so that it depends vertically from the cross-bar. To the ear I5.is pivotally secured, asby rivet H6, one end of a link bar H, the otherend of which is pivotally secured, as by rivet [8, to an ear is which iswelded to a lower or offset portion 2a of the handle 9.

The handle 9 has mounted on the lower extremity thereof, a wheelassembly 2!, which, in combination with the wheels l2 on the legs 8,permit the carrier to be moved easily over the ground, the caster wheelsl2 permitting changes in direction in the well known manner.

At a point approximately midway between the ends of the handle, aremounted two transversely spaced buttons 22 having large heads 23surmounting shanks 24. The buttons are adapted to fit into keyhole slots25 which are formed in that portion of the frame I which lies adjacentthe handle 9.

The slots 25 comprise a large central opening 28, whose diameter isgreater than the diameter of the heads 23, and slots 21 which extenddiametrically in a longitudinal direction from the opening 26, the widthof the slots being less than the diameter of the heads 23, but slightlygreater than the diameter of the shanks 24 of the but tons 22.

In the operative position of the carrier (as in Figs. 1 and 2), thehandle '9 is locked to the frame l by means of the aforementionedbuttons 22 and slots 25, the buttons being inserted into the largecentral opening 26, and the frame I then being moved downwardlyrelatively to the handle 9 so as to cause the buttons to enter thenarrow slots 21 in which position the heads 23 of the buttons overliethe frame I.

The handle when thus secured, is held against any pivotal movementrelatively to the frame about a horizontal axis and for all practicaloperative purposes is longitudinally immovable. The weight of thecarrier frame plus the weight of the contents of the carrier body aresufficient to keep the frame in the relative position shown in Fig. 4.Even if the carrier were lifted bodily by the frame. the buttons wouldslip past central opening 26 and come to rest in the oppositely disposednarrow slot 21 thereby maintaining the handle secured to the frame.Deliberate manipulation of the handle is required to release it from theframe.

On the upper extremity of the handle 9 is secured a hand support 28which facilitates pushing and handling of the carrier.

As described thus far, it will be apparent that the carrier is sturdilyconstructed, easilymaneuverable, and well adapted for the purpose ofconveniently transporting an infant or small child.

Referring now more specifically to Figs. 3 and 6, I have so designed andconstructed the carrier thatit may be folded or collapsed into a compactunit which can readily be carried about or stored when-it is not beingused.

To fold the carrier, the handle Q is released from its locked engagementwith the frame l, by raising the frame until the heads 23 of the buttons22 are aligned with the: central openings 26 of the keyhole slots 25.The handle is then pivoted or moved to the left as viewed in Fig. whichcauses the buttons 22 to disengage entirely from the frame i.

The portion of the frame which carries the legs 8, is then raised orrotated toward the handle 9 (counter-clockwise as viewed in Fig. 2),causing thelegs 3 and link bar I! to assume positions longitudinallyparallel to that of the frame l.

The oifset portion 20 of the handle permits the legs a and link bar I!to be in spaced alignment with each other, and in combination with theoffset pivotal mounting provided by the ear H, aforementioned, permitsthe link bar H to move to its full vertical position withoutinterference by the frame I.

A lug or car 29 is welded to the frame I and a complementary ear 3!) iswelded to the handle 9, the ears 29 and 30 being provided with openingswhich when aligned as ,in Fig. '6, permit a locking pin 35 to be passedtherethrough. The pin 31 may be permanently secured to the frame 1 bysuitable means 32 such as a wire or chain, so that it will not get lostor misplaced.

The pin 3! serves to lock the handle 9 to the frame 1 when the carrieris in its folded condition and holds the parts relatively immovable. Theweight of the carrier is sufficient to hold the pin 3| frictionally inposition and prevent the parts from being released.

In the folded condition, the carrier may be wheeled along the pavementon wheel assembly 2i or it may be easily carried by means of the handsupport 28. Obviously it may be conveniently stored in the luggagecompartment of an automobile, or on the rack of a bus or train, and willoccupy very little space.

Although, the carrier has been described as being primarily adapted forcarrying infants or small children, it will be apparent that it may beused with equal facility for carrying other manher of things such aspackages, etc.

It is to be noted that although I have described the buttons as beinglocated on the handle 9, and the slots 25 as being located on the frame1, these locations could be reversed, if desired, that is, the buttonscould be on the frame and the slots could be formed in the handle.

It is to be understood that the form of my invention, herewith shown anddescribed is to be taken as a preferred example of the same, and thatvarious changes in shape, size and arrangement of parts may be resortedto, without departing from the spirit of my invention, or the scope ofthe subjoined claims.

Havin thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a carrier of the character described, the combination of anormally horizontally disposed frame, a wheeled frame supporting memberpivotally secured to said frame, a wheeled frame supporting element,means for detachably securing said element immovably to said frame, anda link pivotally connecting said element and said member, whereby saidmember and said frame are movabl into parallelism with said element upondetachment of said element from said frame, the vertical distance fromsaid horizontal 1y disposed frame to the pivotal connection between saidlink and said element being substantially greater than the verticaldistance from said frame to the pivotal connection between said link andsaid member.

2. In a carrier of the character described, the combination of a framedisposed in a horizontal plane, legs pivotally secured to and supportingsaid frame at two horizontally spaced points thereof, a third legsupporting said frame, means for detachably securing said third legimmorably to said frame, and a link pivotally connecting said third legto said first-named legs, the vertical distance from said frame to thepivotal connection between said link and said third leg beingsubstantially greater than the vertical distance from said frame to thepivotal connection between said link and said first-named legs.

3. A wheel carrier comprising a rectangular frame disposed in ahorizontal plane, a carrier body mounted on said frame, wheel-carryinglegs pivotally secured to and supporting said frame at two adjacentcorners thereof, a third wheelcarrying leg supporting said frame, meansdetachably securing said third leg immovably to said frame, and a linkbar pivotally connecting said third leg to said first-named legs wherebysaid legs and said frame are movable into parallelism upon detachment ofsaid third leg from said frame, the vertical distance from said frame tothe pivotal connection between said link bar and said third leg beingsubstantially greater than the vertical distance from said frame to thepivotal connection between said link bar and said first-named legs.

4. A wheel carrier as defined in claim 3, in-\ cluding securing meansprovided on said frame for releasably locking said frame to said thirdleg when said frame and said legs are in parallel- 20 ism.

5. A Wheel carrier as defined in claim 3 wherein said means comprise abutton-and-slot connection between said third leg and said frame.

ADELINE E. LASH.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS NumberName Date 105,505 Stagg July 19, 1870 134,226 Stagg Dec. 24, 1872488,095 Scott et al Dec. 13, 1892 658,123 Rosenthal Sept. 18, 19002,264,121 Pattiani Nov. 25, 1941 2,470,040 Mackin et a1. May 10, 19492,471,004 Moster May 24, 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date663,945 France Apr. 16, 1929

